$88 million granted to support home-based care

Low-income families may benefit when nurses and social workers visit their home to provide parenting and life skills advice, research shows.

The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services announced that $88 million will be granted to states to help support such home-based programs for at-risk families.

Research from the American Academy of Pediatrics reveals that home-based visitation programs resulted in the mothers having fewer pregnancies, decreased reliance on welfare and fewer emergency room visits.

Officials say that they believe the preventative care measure will help children live a healthy life.

"This initiative will give children a healthier start and give parents the help they need to succeed in the most important job in the world - parenting," says HHS Secretary Kathleen Sebelius. "This effort builds on impressive research findings and is one more piece of our strategy to invest in prevention and early interventions that pay off."

While the initial investment in preventative programs may seem extravagant to some, the AAP says that in the long-run, the programs pay for themselves through reduced reliance on welfare, food stamps and additional pregnancies.